It is based on the short story "Madame Butterfly" (1898) by John Luther Long, which in turn was based on stories told to Long by his sister Jennie Correll and on the semi-autobiographical 1887 French novel Madame Chrysanthème by Pierre Loti. Long's version was dramatized by David Belasco as the one-act play Madame Butterfly: A Tragedy of Japan, which, after premiering in New York in 1900, moved to London, where Puccini saw it in the summer of that year.
| Librettist | Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa (Based on "Madame Butterfly" by John Luther Long and on "Madame Chrysanthème" by Pierre Loti) |
| Date of composition | 1904 (This first version was followed by four other versions in 1904, 1905, 1906 and 1920) |
| Premiered | 1904, February 17th in Milan, Italy |
| Type | Opera |
| Approx. duration | 145 minutes |
| Spoken language | Italian |
| Instruments |
Orchestra
Chorus/Choir Voice (Soprano) - Cio-Cio San (Madama Butterfly) Voice (Mezzo-Soprano) - Suzuki, servente di Cio-Cio-San (maid of Cio-Cio-San) Voice (Tenor) - Pinkerton, tenente della marina degli Stati Uniti (Lieutenant in the United States Navy) Voice (Tenor) - Sharpless, console degli Stati Uniti a Nagasaki (United States consul at Nagasaki) Voice (Tenor) - Goro, nakodo (a matchmaker) Voice (Tenor) - Il Principe Yamadori (Prince Yamadori) Voice (Bass) - Lo zio Bonzo (The Bonze, Cio-Cio San's uncle) Voice (Bass) - Lo zio Yakusidé (Yakuside, Cio-Cio San's uncle) Voice (Bass) - Il Commissario Imperiale (The Imperial Commissioner) Voice (Bass) - L'ufficiale del registro (The Official Registrar) Voice (Mezzo-Soprano) - La madre di Cio-Cio-San (Cio-Cio San's mother) Voice (Soprano) - La zia (The aunt) Voice (Soprano) - La cugina (The cousin) Voice (Mezzo-Soprano) - Kate Pinkerton |
| In listings |
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Famous Works
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| Autotranslations beta |
Giacomo Puccini: Madama Butterfly Giacomo Puccini: Madama Butterfly Giacomo Puccini: Madama Butterfly |